READINGS for 2006-05-01

The Correctional Institution for Women is the only penology institution in the Philippines for women who have committed crimes. Or have they all? There is 70-year-old Lola Pasing who is a laundry woman cum tindera who worked hard to feed the grandchildren left under her care. The authorities found a ?leaf? and marked money (a ten-peso-bill). They said this ?leaf,? was marijuana hidden in Lola Pasing?s vegetables for sale. Punishment: life sentence! Another case. A minor with ?qualified theft? attached to her name. The truth is she refused to have carnal sex with her boss. There are also people who give overseas employment to hopeless Filipinos whose legitimate means were reported as illegal by envious false witnesses. False witnesses have let many innocents suffer, along with their loved ones who continually sacrifice and bear it all while their mothers are in jail. What these false witnesses do not realize is that they the false testimony that they bear is more harmful to them than it is to the ones they accuse. Because they are being false witnesses to the true image of God that they had been originally created in. Let us pray for these people, that they may one day live up to the truth. Beth C.

REFLECTION:Jesus Christ who is the Son of God was sentenced to die because of false witnesses. No wonder human beings experience the same.

This Feast was established in order to counter the May Day parades celebrating the rise of communism in Eastern Europe. As we reflect today on the life of the father of Jesus it is good to reflect upon the dignity of work and its necessity for human dignity and fulfillment. Through work, the human person shares in the task of transforming this world and him or her self into the image and likeness of God. Each person shares in the creative power of God in helping to bring about His Kingdom in our lives.

26 Then God said: ?Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. Let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, and the cattle, and over all the wild animals and all the creatures that crawl on the ground.? 27 God created man in his image; in the divine image he created him; male and female he created them. 28 God blessed them, saying: ?Be fertile and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it. Have dominion over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, and all the living things that move on the earth.? 29 God also said: ?See, I give you every seed-bearing plant all over the earth and every tree that has seed-bearing fruit on it to be your food; 30 and to all the animals of the land, all the birds of the air, and all the living creatures that crawl on the ground, I give all the green plants for food.? And so it happened. 31 God looked at everything he had made, and he found it very good. Evening came, and morning followed ? the sixth day. 2: 1 Thus the heavens and the earth and all their array were completed. 2 Since on the seventh day God was finished with the work he had been doing, he rested on the seventh day from all the work he had undertaken. 3 So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work he had done in creation.

P S A L M

Psalm 90:2, 3-4, 12-13, 14 and 16

R: Lord, give success to the work of our hands.

2 Before the mountains were begotten and the earth and the world were brought forth, from everlasting to everlasting you are God. (R) 3 You turn men back to dust, saying, ?Return, O children of men.? 4 For a thousand years in your sight are as yesterday, now that it is past, or as a watch of the night. (R) 12 Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain wisdom of heart. 13 Return, O LORD! How long? Have pity on your servants! 14 Fill us at daybreak with your kindness, that we may shout for joy and gladness all our days. 16 Let your work be seen by your servants and your glory by their children. (R)

G O S P E L

Matthew 13:54-58

We know very little about the home life of Jesus but it is clear that he grew up in Nazareth. It is amazing to read that the people of Nazareth, those who would have known him best, seemed to be least able to accept the Gospel! Perhaps they found it difficult to accept that someone they knew so well had an identity that they could hardly have imagined. Whatever the reason, let us ensure that, to the best of our ability,we do not allow our familiarity with the things of God to affect our faith in Him. Let us also never be afraid of hard work as through it we contribute to God?s plan of creation.

54 He came to his native place and taught the people in their synagogue. They were astonished and said, ?Where did this man get such wisdom and mighty deeds? 55 Is he not the carpenter?s son? Is not his mother named Mary and his brothers James, Joseph, Simon, and Judas? 56 Are not his sisters all with us? Where did this man get all this?? 57 And they took offense at him. But Jesus said to them, ?A prophet is not without honor except in his native place and in his own house.? 58 And he did not work many mighty deeds there because of their lack of faith.

my reflectionsthink: Through work, the human person shares in the task of transforming this world and him or her self into the image and likeness of God. Each person shares in the creative power of God in helping to bring about His Kingdom in our lives.

Today, we celebrate the memorial of Joseph the Worker. More than celebrating the dignity of work, we celebrate the dignity of the worker. The reading from Genesis speaks of the inherent dignity that lies in the very fiber of our existence. The very moment God loved us into existence, He encoded in us the privilege of being like Him and thus being co-creators with Him. He didn?t leave us a static world but one that we could shape and change and care for. He gave us the power to work. When God put us in charge of the earth, He intended that the work of our hands would be life-giving. This power to co-create something of value and life-giving brings out the true dignity of a person. It is known to us that the inability to work and the experience of unemployment brings about depression and is a personal blow to one?s self-esteem. It incapacitates a person. This is the reason why it is the moral obligation of a nation?s government to insure that every one is employed in a job befitting the person?s dignity as a child of God and one that compensates a just wage. It is the moral duty of the employer to provide a wage that is proportional to living a normal, balanced llife. We must always remember that more than estimating the value of the work done, we need to value the divine worth of the worker behind it. It has practical consequences for us who live in a country where the minimum wage is not exactly a just one. But God doesn?t want labor to be our end. In a world where workaholism and productivity are signs of success, God tells us that our worth ultimately doesn?t rely on the work that we build. It relies in knowing that our home is in the Creator. This is what it means to rest. To rest is to consciously be in the presence of God and to know that even the work of our hands fade. And only one thing is important: to experience the rest of being with the Lord. Bro. Noel C.

REFLECTION QUESTION:Is your job taking the life out of you instead of being life-giving? Schedule a time to rest and to relax in the presence of the Lord.

Father, bless the tasks that lay before me today. Sanctify them and make them fruitful. More than that, I ask that You teach me to rest. Teach me to find my home in You.

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